The Maryland and D.C. areas have become a hotbed of high school football talent over the last few years. What started with five-star prospects Derrick Harvey and Derrick Williams in 2004 and 2005 respectively continued in the last couple of years with studs like Jelani Jenkins, Nick Forbes and Arie Kouandjio. And 2011 looks to be as deep as ever, led by elite offensive tackle Cyrus Kouandjio, one of many expected at the MD/DC Regional Elite Showcase on March 7.

The MD/DC Regional Elite Showcase sponsored by MD Underclass Sports and Ego Sports and organized by MDHigh.com will be held at the Frederick Indoor Sports Center in Frederick, Md., on Sunday, March 7. All participating athletes will be tested in the 40-yard dash, shuttle, vertical jump, broad jump and bench press.

Following testing, skill athletes will be evaluated in 1-on-1 drills and 7-on-7 competition while big men will compete in the Lineman Challenge.

Legendary DeMatha head coach Bill McGregor will host the Lineman Challenge along with prominent head coaches and assistant coaches from the area while quarterbacks will be tutored by Dematha assistant coach Chris Baucia, founder of one of the top quarterback camps in the area - The Quarterback Factory.

Kouandjio, a 6-foot-7, 310-pounder from Hyattsville (Md.) DeMatha Catholic, already has offers from major programs like Alabama, Southern Cal, Notre Dame, Tennessee and many others. Kouandjio is one of the top offensive tackle prospects in the country and is already in the early discussion for the nation's No. 1 prospect. He is expected to lead a strong group of offensive and defensive linemen in the Lineman Challenge. In addition to Kouandjio, offensive linemen Donovan Smith from Owings Mills, Md., Kelby Johnson (also from DeMatha), Larry Mazyck from Washington (D.C.) Friendship Collegiate Academy, Leon Brown from Riverdale (Md.) Parkdale and others are expected to participate.

The skill positions are led by Baltimore (Md.) Gilman athlete Darius Jennings, one of the top prospects in the country with early offers from Penn State, Ohio State, Michigan, Maryland, Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, North Carolina, West Virginia and numerous others. Jennings, a 5-foot-11, 170-pounder, could play numerous positions in college including running back, wide receiver and cornerback.

The morning session will be for class of 2012 skill position prospects led by Brown, Diggs and others while the evening session will be for 2011 skill positions players that will feature such matchups as Jennings against Countess and Crockett against Harris. In the afternoon, the Lineman Challenge will take place pitting Kouandjio against McReynolds and other top matchups.

Those interested in participating in the MD/DC Regional Elite Showcase can e-mail Wayne Yarborough at mdhighwayne@gmail.com and Dave Lomonico at dpl_sports@yahoo.com from MDHigh.com. Registration deadline is Feb. 28.